Thursday, March 31, 2011

Yo, I know ya'll remember this commercial for the Air Max 97 Uptempo's man. Reggie Miller was my favorite player when I was a kid, and this was a commercial he did with Spike Lee a couple years after he torched the Knicks in that 1994 Eastern Conference Finals game at the Garden. I can't lie, when I was a kid I was pissed to see my guy doing a commercial with Spike little punk ass, but it ended up being one of my favorites.

I actually knew Jalen Rose's mother when I was a kid, even though I never met Jalen. Here's the homie and the Fab Five boys expressing how they really felt about those Duke teams in the early 90's. If you haven't had the chance to see the Fab Five ESPN movie your missing out on one of the dopest, realest, stories ever told; the legend of the Fab Five. Dudes changed the game, not just the way we play, but they bought style to the game as well, shoes, socks, long shorts, we owe all that to the homies of the Fab Five.

When the Hornets drafted Marcus Thornton out of LSU I instantly thought they had finally added their best shooting guard to pair alongside CP3 since drafting J.R. Smith a few years back and not giving him the chance to develop. Thornton showed last season that he was nasty. When Cp3 went out last season with injury, it was the Rookie pair of Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton that were getting it done. Thornton is an explosive scorer, he's got a slept on handle too, he can get his shot off at anytime and the homie can stroke it. Yup...I saw promise in The Big Easy, the leagues soon to be best backcourt were gonna' be entertaining...but...things changed. Even though the Hornets started off the season hot, they bought in two new shooting guards both whom got placed ahead of Thornton in the rotation, and when he got his chances, he was inconsistent. Then...the Hornets GM pulled the trigger, a trigger releasing a bullet reminiscent of the one that shipped J.R. Smith out of town...only to see him end up in Denver and become one of the leagues best 3-point shooters; this time...it was Thornton that got shipped to Sac-Town, and he has relished the opportunity. Since playing for the Kings, Thornton has averaged 22 ppg. and he dropped a career-high 42 points on the Warriors. When Tyreke Evans gets back from injury, the Kings have the potential to have one of the leagues top backcourts. First J.R. Smith, now Marcus Thornton; the Hornets have let go of two promising SG's; and while Smith and Thornton leave a sour taste in their former employers mouth, the Hornets may never see another two-guard in the Chris Paul era.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Without question, in the midst of the Post-Melo era in Denver, the Nuggets have become the leagues most balanced team. The Nuggets are 8-2 since the departure of the teams former superstar, and without a true All-Star caliber player, the Nuggets have managed to keep winning just like I said they would. With the Wizards playing awful as usual, and Aaron Brooks getting traded to the Suns, the Nuggets are probably at the top of my list of favorite teams. The balance is unreal, since Melo left, the Nuggets are averaging 109.3 PPG. They push the tempo, and have players that could start on other teams coming off of their bench. They are two deep at every single position. They have the best group of guards in the league; Lawson, Felton, Afflalo, and JR Smith, with one of the leagues best centers...Nene. They also have great wing players with Chandler and Gallo, and with K-Mart showing he's still got it, they are crazy deep. The only thing that scares me about this team is they don't have a "closer" without Melo, someone's gotta step up and be that. But they currently hold the 5th spot in the West, and if the playoffs started today, they would be locked in for a first round match up against the OKC Thunder; which would be dope. So...are the Nuggets a better team without Melo? Yes, but...the Knicks are also a better team WITH him, so the trade worked out for both teams.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

The past few weeks I hit ya'll with my top 5 lists of each position in the league. I never got to PF's so here we go. Now, this is the probably the best position in the league right now in terms of elite guys. I'm gonna' give guys like Tim Duncan and KG a lifetime achievement award and exclude them from this list, because based on their game now, they probably wouldn't make it, and I'm not just gonna' exclude arguably the best Power Forward of all time from my list, respect and love to Duncan and KG, and don't get it twisted because the old vets do turn it up come playoff time. But, Now...the list.

1.Amar'e Stoudemire(26 ppg. 8 rpg.) - AKA S.T.A.T.(Standing Tall and Talented) it was once said that the homie wouldn't be able to hold his own in the league once he wasn't paired with Steve Nash anymore, they said he needed Nash. Now, it looks like it should have been the other way around (no shots at the 2-time MVP). Amar'e is a banger inside and since he's added that mid range jump-shot to his already full-clip arsenal he's almost been unstoppable. Amar'e saved New York before Melo joined the revival of NY Hoops, and he's in the midst of an MVP caliber season. He carried those boys on his back, now he has a little more help. One of the best big men in the league at running the pick and roll, a powerful finisher at the rim, Amar'e is the best in the L.

2.LaMarcus Aldridge(22 ppg. 9 rpg.) - Ever since Brandon Roy went down, and continued to be plagued with injuries, Aldridge has embraced the role as the teams go-to-guy and the homie has been putting up some big numbers this season, including a 42 point game against the Bulls a couple months back. Aldridge is also the league leader in alley-oop finishes, a stat that the whole world would say Blake Griffin has his foot on. Aldridge has a solid back to the basket post game, he's long, rebounds well and blocks shots, and he also has a solid mid range jumper that reminds us alot of Rasheed Wallace with that high release. Dude has game and Portland can continue to build the franchise around him.

3.Pau Gasol(19 ppg. 10 rbg.) - Before Pau even landed in Laker town he was already one of the leagues elite big men with the Grizzlies, it's just that now the whole world knows it. Pau is perfect for Kobe and he has a couple of rings on his Spanish fingers to prove that he is one of the best in the world. Gasol also puts on for his home country of Spain in the Olympics when they roll around, and also the Worlds when they roll around. Spain is definatley one of the top teams in the world, along with the U.S. and Argentina. Gasol has arguably the best low post game in the league, he's crafty as hell, can pass the ball, rebound, and can knock down the mid-range shot on top of having an amazing basketball I.Q.

4.Kevin Love(21 ppg. 16 rpg.)- The work-horse. There is no outworking Kevin Love, no matter how hard you try. The homie is a beast on the boards. Love had that amazing 31 and 31 game, which was one of the best individual performances the league has ever seen. And even though we have seen the sad end to his consecutive double double streak, it was a good run as he set a new record, toping all-time great Moses Malone with 53 straight double double's, that's greatness, and in the game where his streak ended, the homie still had 12 boards, he was just cold on the offensive end. Love is a smart player, and he can stroke the long ball as well. A-lot of people don't wanna' give Love the credit he deserves, but numbers don't lie, he's amongst the leagues best.

5.Dirk Nowitzki(23 ppg. 7rbg.) - Dirk's game speaks for itself. He has been the face of the Mavericks franchise for a while now and the German sharp-shooter has become probably the best international player the league has ever seen, along with becoming the best shooting big-man the league has ever seen. Dirk's game is crazy smooth man, back to the basket, that little fade away off one foot...shit is beautiful. He's toned down his three-point attempts this season, keeping it mostly mid-range and back to the basket. Dirk can handle the rock for a big guy as well and he's the reason the Mavs are at the top of the West with the Spurs and Lakers.

Yo, I'm still breaking down some of the bigger deals that the trade deadline brought us. Next we have the OKC and Boston deal that sent Jeff Green to the Celtics for Kendrick Perkins (other players were involved in the deal). Now, for me as a fan,I hate this deal, it hurts. I never thought they'd break up that nucleus in OKC of Durant, Green, and Westbrook that they built the franchise around. But, for when it comes to analyzing the trade, it's a great move for both teams in my opinion. For the Thunder, they're bringing in size, they automatically become a serious contender in the West, like, I'm talking NBA Finals capability. With Perkins on board in OKC, they finally have a real big down there that can bang with anybody in the league. Perkins isn't the best offensive player, but he's solid and one of the best defensive big men int he league, Perkins puts OKC in the position to battle for the top spot in the West, and compete against the Spurs, and Lakers. For the Celtics, Jeff Green coming off the bench is good for them, they needed bench depth, but it's also a move for the future if Green sticks around. I mean, let's be real, even though Ray Allen is one of my favorite players the Celtics are old, and soon that'll be Rondo's team, adding Green with Rondo is dope for the future. Adding Green also adds a little bit more time to the Celtics title chases in the next couple years to come.

I know I haven't posted anything in a couple weeks but I've been busy. But it's been a little bit since the trade deadline; stars got shipped out, and there were a lot of buyouts. First, Melo is gonna' be happy in NY with Amare, and don't count Billups out, he's still one of the leagues best PG's and I think he has a couple years left in the tank. This trade definatley solidifies NY's playoff spot in the east for this year, but I don't know how far they get, they're still a piece or two away from being elite, not just in the east. Deron Williams in Jersey, I'm not feeling that, especially not for the homie D-Will. With the exception of Brooke Lopez; who I don't think compliments Williams all that well because he's not a pick and roll guy, and Anthony Morrow, who is a dead-eye shooter that D-Will's gonna continuosly get open shots for, there's no where near enough talent on that roster to compete, even with arguably the leagues best PG. Now, D-Will can stay in hopes of attracting some other stars, which is why Jersey traded for him anyway, plus they'll be in Brooklyn soon, and D-Will and Brooklyn is a pretty good marketing combination for other players in the league. But so is Melo and Amare in NY.